Pre-Lockdown Escape to Sha'ar Binyamin

I've really been a good girl, staying close to home and not inviting people over. It gets embarrassing at times, since some of my neighbors really need the invitations to socialize. I try to keep inviting friends to walk with me, but...

Sometimes even I need an escape. So a friend and I went to Sha'ar Binyamin a nearby shopping area, which can be easily reached by bus. We went two days before the latest lockdown began. She needed to take care of and get a few things. I just needed an escape.

Stop number one was the Hapisga dry cleaners, where my friend dropped something off. It was two minutes' walk from the bus stop.

Then we wandered around the smallish "Baba Mall" and bought some disposable items. I got a size of storage containers which I needed.

In the chumus place, we had something to drink. I decided to go for a beer, since it was a celebration of sorts. Even now, two weeks later, I haven't a clue when I'll be able to travel again.

My friend bought a few accessories in a nice clothing shop. We also peeked into the phone store and lots of other places.

Afterwards we walked up to the other stores in Sha'ar Binyamin. I was hoping to buy more jersey yarn, but the selection was awful. 

Instead of walking up and down the streets of Shiloh, it was great to walk someplace else.

Then before getting on the bus home, we went to the Shifon Bakery which had just moved to new premises, directly across from the bus stops. I bought my husband a honey cake, but in the end just a couple of hours before lockdown, one of our sons came with his family for a quick pre-lockdown visit. They gave us a cake baked by our talented daughter-in-law which tasted much better than the store-bought one.

Yes, trying to survive corona COVID in more ways than one.

The New Jewish Year 5781 Has Begun, So Far Amazing

Happy 5781
Here's my Be a HEAD not a Tail

On one hand I must admit that Rosh Hashana was awfully depressing. I miss having guests and being hosted. I remember the days when our dining room extended into the living room with multiple tables, all the family plus guests. And then we'd be hosted by neighbors for other holiday meals.

This year my husband and I ate by ourselves, alone, just the two of us. Our children had their own holiday meals. We'll be eating leftovers for the next few days, and I'll try not to think of way back when...

It has been months and months since I've entered the local shul, which is literally in our backyard. I stopped staying for the entire prayer service about a year or more ago when I found the the cold drafts too uncomfortable. I even bought a hooded coat that makes me look like Darth Vardar in powder blue. I decided to give up on the "window wars," preferring not to fight with anyone. 

We had to sign up for the limited seats for this Rosh Hashana, so I took the plunge. Then a neighbor, who knows me well, said:

"You'll be miserable and leave immediately. The new regulations require open windows."

So I decided to try something new. There's an outdoor minyan almost directly across from my house. I set up a chair just outside the door, and that became my private "Ezrat Nashim," Women's Section. Since it's well in my property, I didn't even need to wear a mask. I could hear most everything, thank Gd.

Even better, I heard lots of shofar blowing. The early minyan a bit further way must have blown shofar outside, since I heard theirs. And of course I heard the park one. And I heard from our synagogue, the Yemenite minyan and when someone blew for neighbors across the street.

The neighborhood was live with the sounds of shofar blowing!

The multitude of prayer groups all over was so much better and more spiritual than sitting in a packed synagogue.

Actually, once the government allowed limited numbers to pray in the synagogue, my husband returned and sits in his regular spot. The synagogue is much emptier than it used to be. Many neighbors now pray in parks and backyards, so as long as the ones who prefer the shul building spread out, it's considered "safe."

During our family Pre-Rosh Hashanah zoom, I had been asked to give a blessing to all the clan. I found myself saying:

"Be thankful for what you have."

This may not have been what anyone expected; the usual blessing is for health. But I wonder if this whole corona COVID life change/challenge/pandemic has been to shake us up. Maybe Gd wants us to look and what we have and be grateful/thankful. Suddenly we're so limited/restricted, and we must learn to accept and welcome it. 

There's an expression:

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

Right now, unless you're a scientist working on a cure or vaccine for corona COVID, you're best off trying to make lemonade. I've also been crocheting. 

What sort of lemonade have you been making?

Israel's Heading into Another Holiday Lock-Down

I have no doubt that the new upcoming Rosh Hashanah lock-down is because people have been making Rosh Hashanah holiday plans as if it's a regular year. Too many people are back to inviting their nearest and dearest who actually don't live nearby at all. 

Even worse, some of those invited to green locations aka communities without any recent corona COVID ill come from cities/neighborhoods with people who are sick with the virus.

We survived Passover alone, when we're supposed to be telling to story of our slavery and rescue to our children, so we can survive Rosh Hashanah, two days of prayers, on our own. 

I'm also not hysterical over the "how will I shop?" question. During the first lock-down, we were able to order from our local supermarket, and everything was delivered. My only problem, again, will be getting new yarn and buttons for my latest craft project, bags. I find the crocheting a wonderful way of keeping my hands busy when listening to classes or watching programs and movies. An added bonus is that it keeps the food out of my mouth when I shouldn't be eating.

I trust that our supermarket manager and, of course, chain's owner will keep it stocked. During lock-down #1 we received care packages from the government, too. I developed a number of recipes with the foods we generally don't buy.

Instead of getting hysterical, I'm just taking it all day by day. Since I have no control over the outside things, all I can do is control myself. 

Keeping Busy Without Leaving Home Much, Corona COVID-19 Lock-down

Real life in the Corona COVID-19 Lock-down or just trying to stay healthy and sane. 

I have been enjoying classes via zoom and learning with my study group on Skype. I multi-task by crocheting while at the screen as you can see.

I've even discovered that with the equipment I have, I'm best off using both my computer and phone simultaneously. Microphone and audio are via my phone. But since the phone only shows a maximum of four other participants, I simultaneously zoom on my computer. Before you ask why I don't just use the computer, I must make it clear that my computer doesn't have a camera and mic. Yes, I understand that they sell attachments that would add those capabilities. I'll have to get one if I decide to zoom the Yom Iyyun Tanach (Bible) Study Day at Herzog this summer. Zoom really eats up the phone's battery power.

You can see how I use both phone and computer participating in Matan classes. Their special summer program is scheduled to suit both the "Israel clock" and North America. But I've signed up for Yael Leibowitz's  "Confronting the Other." 

As much as I miss why weekly "vacation in Jerusalem," I do enjoy the convenience of studying from home. I've also been having great fun watching shows, musicals, movies, tv shows etc from my phone and computer all for free. I even march around the house watching on my phone instead of walking outdoors.

BBC Proms' Oklahoma was superb! 

How are you coping with today's restrictions? Or are you ignoring them?

Just stay healthy and happy. I'm doing my best Gd willing.

Another Delivery, Golden Age in Corona Lock-down

To be perfectly honest, we're no longer completely locked-down. But we are restricted. We're allowed out and traveling, even on public transportation, as long as we're masked. A few weeks into the lock-down when corona virus, COVID-19 was growing in numbers, I  signed us up for prepared meals as a treat. Constantly cooking, three meals a day for each of us was getting me down. Even though we're just two people, my husband and I are on different food regimes to try to keep our weights down. His is more portion control of carbohydrates and proteins, while I have to stay away from carbohydrates. The bonus to being on this meal list was getting food staples and toilet paper.

After Passover we got a couple of half-empty cartons of stuff, but this week we received lots more.

Besides the toilet paper, which we won't have to buy until next winter, there were beets, oranges, onions, potatoes, carrots, sesame paste, pasta, rice, cookies, salt, sugar, dates, tuna fish, jam, canola oil, long-life milk and a great challenge to fit it all into the pantry. BTW that's just a partial list of what was very efficiently packed into the cartons.

We're on a very limited income, and I will find a way to use pretty much everything we've received. I've blogged recipes for some of the food made with the goodies we've gotten.

I'm grateful that we're here in Israel, and the government is being generous. Most municipalities or regional councils have been providing similar packages to senior citizens. And, yes, if you're wondering, everything is strictly kosher.

Take care. How are you managing?

No-Sew Mask Credit: Adventures in Mama-Land

I'm so glad to have discovered Tzivia's  Literally TWO MINUTE no-sew easy coronavirus mask from an old hankie (video + step-by-step guide).

I followed directions best I could. The only differences were that since my husband's hankies are a bit smaller, I had to fold a bit larger than by thirds, and it felt better to tie slightly differently around my head, probably because my scarf is different. But I'm very happy with the results. I'll probably cut some 100% cotton fabric the right size to have more.

Thanks, Tzivia. I really appreciate the idea and your hard work perfecting this no-sew mask.

PS I used about a meter of jersey yarn I've been crocheting with for potholders and rugs.

"Corona" Theater, Free "The Diary of Anne Frank"

Yesterday I sat at my computer and watched to most amazing reading of  The Diary of Anne Frank. It was by the Park Square Theatre. Viewable online, only though May 15. Free. go to www.parksquaretheatre.org and see what they offer.

Obviously the actors were all in their own homes, and you can sometimes see them glancing at the scripts. The only "props" were the yellow stars, the book/diary and occasionally a coat.

The performance was amazing. I highly recommend watching. I remember reading the book way back when I was a young girl in the 1950s. And in 1977, before we returned from our two year shlichut, job as Zionist Youth emissaries in London I spent a few days in Amsterdam (with our then toddler) and visited the Anne Frank Museum. Besides that, I'm not an expert in Holocaust lore. This version of the play can be used by teachers, but hurry before it's no longer available for free.

THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK
A special presentation created by artists in isolationAvailable for streaming through May 15, 2020  By Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett

Directed by Ellen Fenster

It’s utterly impossible for me to build my life on a foundation of chaos, suffering and death. I see the world as slowly being transformed into a wilderness, I hear that approaching thunder that, one day, will destroy us too, I hear the suffering of millions. And yet, when I look up at the sky, I somehow feel that everything will change for the better.”— Anne Frank

Cooking With Canned Pineapple, "Apple-Pineapple Compote," Corona Lock-down Recipe #2

This is the second in the series of recipes I've been making with the goodies we've received in "care cartons" for senior citizens here in Shiloh during the Corona Lock-down. See, sample and share:

Cooking With Canned Beans, Corona Lock-down Recipe #1



Corona Lock-down Recipe #2:

The box of goodies/staples sic, we received as senior citizens included a few cans of lightly sweetened pineapple. I decided that with the addition of a few apples and a teaspoon of cinnamon, we'd have Apple-Pineapple Compote.

Yes, that's the recipe plus a bit more water than was in the can. I cooked it all up until the apples were soft, and we ate it for dessert on Shabbat.  There's still some leftover. My husband, who's not much of a fruit eater even liked the compote.

The Apple-Pineapple Compote was very easy to make. The most difficult part of the preparation was opening the can. Thank Gd I have an old simple can-opener.

Corona Lock-down Recipe
Apple-Pineapple Compote

Cooking With Canned Beans, Corona Lock-down Recipe #1

Life in Corona Lock-down. This week I "gave in" and accepted the offer to get some ready-made meals. There are perks to being 70+. We're registered as one person, not two, because I do cook. It's just that the idea of receiving ready-made "restaurant meals" seemed irresistible. The meals are like TV Dinners or kosher airline meals with a bag of pre-washed salad.

The day after we received our first meals, we got two cartons of food staples, disposable eating utensils and a few dozen rolls of toilet paper.

As you can see there are lots of canned goods, and I almost never use canned food.

"Never say never."

Presuming that the cartons will arrive about monthly, I decided that our lunches will be based on the food we've received. Since I had baked sandwich rolls the day before, my husband got a tuna sandwich and I ate the other half of the can with cooked vegetables.

The following day I challenged myself to come up with a meal using the Baked Beans in Tomato Sauce. So I cut up an onion and two nice squashes and put the pieces in a pot, added the contents of the can plus some water.

After the vegetables were fully cooked, I served the "stew" with fresh salad, as you can see in the photo below. My husband also got a serving of pasta.


It was delicious,frugal and we ate much too much. This bean vegetable stew was easy to make, healthy and inexpensive. Call that a success, thank Gd.

Corona COVID-19, Lock-down, Stories Continue

More of my life in the corona lock-down.

Sunday-Thursday most weeks

Now it's post-Pesach, so we're back to a "new normal." Whatever that means. I've resumed my daily story reading on Facebook Live, 4pm Israel time, which is 9am New York time. If you're in a different time zone, I trust you can calculate it. Also, I save the readings on facebook, so just scroll down on my page. 

Everyone seems to be coping differently. it's not all a matter of better or worse. It's more that our needs are all different, and we're making great efforts to stay cheerful, healthy and productive. That's really the best we can do.

I still get out with one of my regular walking partners, but now we're masked and stay 2 meters or 6 and a half feet apart.

My favorite special lock-down activity is reading children's books on Facebook live. But I'm running out of books. That's a problem. I'll have to start borrowing books. You can click the link on the bottom if you have a facebook account and watch one of my readings.

Nobody has a clue as to when life will really go back to normal. Am I repeating myself? Sorry.

https://www.facebook.com/shilohmuse/videos/10222552385141151/?__tn__=%2CdlC-R&eid=ARBtOMVDnEjhZ9C9UGzCstxr2P-iPha9Kvh3ch3HassVs4WC0tyvFfxbOIVCdc_UMCxnc6UcYviulgfW&hc_ref=ARRhVhaYti4QsleeSbA8kHHQ9zPVIrnIjTes8xU30t3tZSujDRYgMnv0KKLicLgrw6g

Baile Rochel Locked In? Nah! Can't Keep a Good Girl Down

Baile Rochel tell you how it really is:

Life in The Corona Lock-down

The other day I got an emergency call from my childhood playmate:

"Baile Rochel, the world is waiting for your words of wisdom."
"Nu, me?"

What wisdom?

I'm just a sloppy overweight middle-aged senior citizen who keeps getting chastised by my children for taking walks outside the house. I dress like a bandit with a mask and all. OK, I admit that the "mask" is just a folded shmatta, cut from a ripped flannel sheet. For goggles, I have my trusty multifocals.

When people ask why I still go outside I answer:

"Doctors orders!"

When corona virus, COVID-19, the plague, or whatever you want to call it, is no more than an awful memory, high blood pressure, diabetes, serious aches and pains, etc ad nauseum will still be live threats. In addition, I live in the "sticks," in a private home, so I don't need scuba gear in an elevator or public stairwell.

I rarely see anyone when outside, and if I do, I cross the street. And if that's not possible, proper corona manners demand that the younger wanderer must climb the nearest tree. A close call was averted when a clueless little kid started approaching encroaching on my personal space, about the distance/height of a star basketball player, so I growled. He got the hint and ran away.


Like many, I'm hoping that I still have clothes that fit when this corona has crooned away. In a "normal year," I would have given fattening chametz, the food forbidden on Passover, away before the holiday begins. And in case you haven't been following the Jewish calendar, Passover's next week. Corona prevention regulations forbid giving away food, so my husband and I are enjoying suffering by eating pancakes-made in large family quantity and other forbidden for dieters foods. Yes, I'm finishing the beer, too. It's chametz!

I haven't seen my grandchildren in person since Purim. But now on the advice of one of my kids I am "living my old dream" to be an international "entertainer" by reading children's stories daily on facebook. Anyone can tune in, as long as you have a facebook account. Join to watch my daily shows.


One corona related regulation I'm following very strictly is staying away from the supermarket. My husband can't do his beloved shuq, open market, shopping either; it's in Jerusalem and shuttered. We must be saving a lot of money. Every few days I call the manager of the local grocer and order a few things. They arrive straight to our doorstep.

And I can't remember the last time I ate out with friends, another frugality of the corona lock-down. We now meet frequently on Zoom, Skype, Whatsapp, email and, of course, my blogs written under my other name. But:

 I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND!

Mrs. Sullivan's Dancing School, Bayside, NY, circa 1953

Corona Lock-down Boredom, Try Reading Blogs

Most of the modern world is suffering severe boredom, since we're in corona lock-down. Try reading blogs. There are still many bloggers like myself who post new material on independent blogs. You have nothing to lose. It's free.

I've been blogging for over twenty years. At one point there was quite a large community of Jewish and Israeli bloggers. We used to have regular blog carnivals, each with a different topic, general, kosher cooking and pictures. Then they faded away. I'm still in touch with some of those bloggers and others I met through blogging.

Some of the most successful bloggers have stopped blogging completely. Others, like myself still enjoy the medium. We get to write and "publish" what we like, when we want. I used to blog "religiously," daily on each of my blogs. Now I blog less.

Every once in a while I blog a round-up of blog posts from various blogs. My custom is just to give you the title without even a hint as to what blog it appears on. Today seems like a good time to offer you some blogs. Reading blogs is a nice way to travel and meet new people, or see old friends.

I'd like to make it clear that I'm not responsible for the opinions of other bloggers included in this round-up.

If there's a blog you'd recommend, please let me know in the comments, thanks. Enjoy, and let me know which is your favorite.

#blogExodus day 4: RISE
Travels With Sushi, A Fable, Genre: Harry Potter
Bnei Braq Corona Drive-Thru
Liberman's now irrelevant
“Because of me, this great storm.”
The Death of Daas Torah
What Did Yitro Hear? Who's Today's Yitro?
Zoom, Skype and Coping in the Corona Lock-down
Jerusalem Living with COVID-19
The Five Crisis Management Languages
Rebooting my Faith
Haiku With Morning Coffee on Facebook
Don’t Panic, Pt. 4: Life in Lockdown
The Irgun and MP John Platts-Mills

Don't forget to read, comment and share. Enjoy, of course, too.